4-year-old girl dies in dog mauling in Chesterfield Inlet, Nunavut
'We are just trying to hold it together,' local official says after girl's death
Nunavut RCMP have confirmed a four-year-old girl is dead following a dog mauling in Chesterfield Inlet.
Police say that they responded to a report of a dog attack around 1 p.m. local time Monday.
Responders arrived as the attack was in progress, freeing the girl from the dog and transporting her to the local health centre with life-threatening injuries.
She was pronounced dead upon arrival.
Rick Van Horne, Chesterfield Inlet's senior administrative officer, said the community is in shock.
"We are devastated, this office is devastated, the community is devastated," he said.
"We are just trying to hold it together."
He said the dog was tied up and that it has since been put down.
RCMP have not yet released the girl's name but say that family has been notified.
The young girl is the second person to be killed by dogs in the North in the last year.
Last fall, Shane Glada of Ross River, Yukon, was missing for two days before his body was found. In May, Yukon's coroner confirmed the 22-year-old was attacked and killed by loose dogs in the community.
People in the community said at the time that Glada was in need of mental health supports.
In March 2010, a four-year-old boy was killed by three loose sled dogs in Pangnirtung, Nunavut.